After building their craft for the past 5 years in their hometown of Dundee and further beyond, progressive metal band Animus are set to release their debut album by the name of Men Into Memories.

Following a brief intro, they get going with Influence, which prepares the audience perfectly for what to expect from this record. Immensely ferocious screams – among the most powerful we’ve heard in quite a while – blistering riffs, forceful drumming, a captivating rhythm; all these qualities are accounted for here and they get the blood pumping like nothing else.

But they are only just getting started, as throughout the rest of the record the band dish out more tracks of this magnitude.

The guitars continue to shine and make their presence felt in the likes of Traitors Odyssey, Bloodstains and Pressure, whilst Slaughter The Suits erupts with a relentless melody. Sawing Of Bones is a ridiculously catchy number where the drum work is off the charts and guest vocalist Liam of Neshiima fame gets the job done; working off frontman Aaron very well.

Reflecting The Abyss is a tenacious tune that continues to lay down the heaviness, before suddenly taking it down for a quiet, bass-driven section; in time picking it back up again with more rocking riffs. At last, Storm serves as a rip-roaring finale to bring the album to a close.

To say we’ve been blown away by Animus’ inaugural full-length release would be quite the understatement. An insane adrenaline rush with a sheer vigor that is sure to have the moshers circling and the hardcore dancers flailing wildly to their heart’s content.

We have a serious candidate for Scottish metal record of the year on our hands, people.